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The Arthur Bruhus papers primarily contain incoming and outgoing letters and greeting cards that Sergeant Bruhus wrote and received while serving in the United States Army during World War II. Bruhus described his everyday life at military camps in Maryland and Texas between January 1943 and April 1945 and his service in France between April 1945 and September 1945.

This Arthur Bruhus papers contain over 200 incoming and outgoing letters and greeting cards that Sergeant Arthur Bruhus wrote and received while serving in the United States Army during World War II. Bruhus described his everyday life at military camps in Maryland and Texas between January 1943 and April 1945 and his service in France between April 1945 and September 1945. The collection also includes negatives for 24 photographs and 13 printed and ephemeral items.

The Correspondence series is comprised of letters, greeting cards, V-mail, and postcards. Arthur Bruhus wrote approximately 175 letters to his mother, Anna Bruhus of Palatine, Illinois, during his time in the military. Bruhus served at several domestic military bases throughout the war, and frequently described his travel between camps and during furloughs, his first impressions upon arrival, the surrounding scenery, and nearby cities (particularly in Texas). While stationed at Fort Bliss, Texas, he occasionally visited Ciudad Juárez, Mexico. Bruhus also discussed camp life and, to a lesser extent, his military assignments. After undergoing radio training at Fort Knox, Kentucky, in June 1943, he worked with radio-controlled planes used for target practice. In November 1943, he noted Camp Barkeley's use of German prisoners of war for manual labor (November 12, 1943). Bruhus was deployed to France in April 1945 and served at Épernay until his return to the United States in 1945. While in France, he commented on the scenery and everyday activities. In one letter he recounted his experiences on V-E Day (May 25, 1945). He enclosed church programs in two letters. His final letter to his mother is dated September 4, 1915.

Bruhus also corresponded with his sisters, nieces and nephews, and acquaintances (about 25 incoming and outgoing letters). Anna Bruhus received several letters from her grandchildren.

The Photographic negatives series is made up film negatives for 24 photographs of unidentified military barracks, soldiers, camouflaged tents, and group exercises.

The 13 items in the Printed items and ephemera series include advertisements, programs, and an issue of the Camp Barkeley News (May 12, 1944).

This collection consists of letters Technician Fifth Grade Raymond E. Evans of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, received from his parents while he served with the United States Army's 93rd General Hospital in England between 1944 and 1945. His parents commented on their social lives in Bethlehem and responded to Raymond's letters and to developments in the war.

This collection consists of manuscript letters and V-mail that Technician Fifth Grade Raymond E. Evans of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, received from his parents, William E. Raymond and Josephine Weiss Evans, while he served with the United States Army's 93rd General Hospital in England during the Second World War. The letters are divided into two series: Correspondence and Photographs and Ephemera . The Correspondence series contains three subseries: Manuscript Correspondence (166 items, February 15, 1944-December 9, 1945); Manuscript V-Mail Correspondence (92 items, March 21, 1944-September 10, 1945), and Photographed V-Mail Correspondence (1,022 items, February 22, 1944-August 7, 1945). The Photographs and Ephemera series holds 4 photographs; ephemera items, which are tickets and a theater program from Birmingham, England; and a brown case used to house letters, an address book, and 2 of the 4 photographs. Two additional photographs are attached to the letter of September 4, 1945.

The Correspondence series contains 1,280 letters, written by Raymond’s parents to him from February 15, 1944 to December 9, 1945. They wrote to their son almost daily, primarily using V-mail correspondence. Their letters provide news of their lives in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and updates about friends and family members. Both of Raymond's parents related news of mail he received at Bethlehem, and occasionally transcribed portions of those letters. As devout members of a local church, they often mentioned their prayers for their son's safety, as well as their attendance at church services and other religious events, and their satisfaction upon hearing that he attended services while abroad. Raymond's father also occasionally mentioned his work on a friend's automobile, and sent updates about professional athletic teams and athletes, particularly related to baseball. William and Josephine Evans occasionally referred to Raymond's military experiences and sometimes reacted to developments in the war, such as the D-Day invasion, V-E Day and V-J Day, and the use of the atomic bomb against Japan (several items, August 1945).

Of the four photographs in the Photographs and Ephemera series , two are of unidentified people and the third and fourth are pictures of William and Josephine Evans and an unidentified man and dog; the latter two are housed with the brown case in which they were originally kept. Two additional photographs of William and Josephine Evans are attached to the letter of September 4, 1945. The address book, which is also housed in the brown case, belonged to Raymond E. Evans and contains listings for friends and family in Bethlehem and from his time in the army, as well as two airmail stamps and a list of instrumental songs.

This collection contains letters that Russell Joseph Sommer ("Joe") of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, received from his brothers in the United States Armed Forces during World War II. Jerome ("Jerry") and George Sommer commented on wedding planning, a shared car, and family relationships and disputes.

This collection contains 17 letters and 2 notes of telephone calls that Russell Joseph Sommer ("Joe") of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, received from his brothers and acquaintances during World War II. The collection also includes 2 ephemeral items and a newspaper clipping.

George W. Sommer wrote 13 letters to his brother, Joe Sommer, while serving in the United States Navy around 1944-1945. As a naval air cadet at Great Lakes, Illinois, he commented on military life and medical testing. George allowed Joe and his wife Dot to use his car while he was away and discussed car maintenance, repairs, and, in one letter, the possibility of selling the vehicle. He wrote about his plans to have a "big wedding" despite his mother's recent death and some family members' misgivings. One group of his letters pertains to George's poor relationship with Joe's wife Dot. George discussed a dispute between his wife, Loretta, and Dot; he expressed his desire to maintain a relationship with his niece, Dorothy Mary, and shared his regret for the strain that Dot's recent actions had put on the brothers' relationship and on George's relationship with Loretta.

Jerry Sommer wrote 2 letters to his brother Joe, in which he discussed his pregnant wife's health (May 1, 1945) and his arrival in port in the United States (July 14, 1945). Joe Sommer received 2 brief notes about phone calls from Jerry, as well as 2 letters from acquaintances; one correspondent enclosed a newspaper clipping about Cincinnati Reds catcher Ray Mueller (May 21, 1944), and the other mentioned a flight he took with an air corps pilot (December 28, 1944). The remaining items are a printed calendar of events at Chapel Hill, North Carolina, for May 12, 1945-May 18, 1945; a card with a Christmas wish and picture of a nativity scene, produced by the National Catholic Community Service; and a newspaper clipping about Catholic marriage rites.

This collection is mainly comprised of letters that Sergeant Stewart F. Laurent wrote to his wife and other family members while serving in France during World War I. The collection also includes documents, postcards, photographs, and ephemera.

This collection (0.5 linear feet) is mainly comprised of letters that Sergeant Stewart F. Laurent wrote to his wife and other family members while serving in France during World War I. The collection also includes documents, postcards, photographs, and ephemera.

The Correspondence series (67 items) contains 65 letters that Laurent wrote about his service in France from March 10, 1918-May 18, 1919; 1 letter that he wrote on January 10, 1918; and 1 letter by other military personnel confirming Laurent's good record as an automobile driver (April 30, 1918). Laurent most frequently wrote to his wife Alice, discussing their separation and anticipating their life together after the war. In other letters to Alice and to his mother, aunt, uncle, and siblings, he described his travels around the French countryside and reported military rumors, particularly those related to the end of the war. He vacationed at Aix-les-Bains in September 1918 and was stationed in Abainville and Haussimont after the Armistice; he also visited Nice and Paris. On Thanksgiving Day, 1918, after the relaxation of censorship requirements, he recounted his passage to France on the USS President Lincoln and enclosed a dinner menu from the journey. Other enclosures include a photographic postcard; snapshots of Laurent, other soldiers, tanks, and places in France; a booklet celebrating Mother's Day; and a political cartoon of an American soldier awaiting his return home. In 2 letters from March 1919, Laurent drew pictures of artillery shells that had been turned into vases.

The Postcards series (11 items) is divided into 3 groups. Stewart F. Laurent sent 3 postcards to his wife Alice between January 8, 1919, and February 17, 1919, of which 2 show the interior and exterior of the Château de Valençay; the third informs Alice of her husband's reassignment to Haussimont, France. The second group of postcards depicts soldiers and scenes from Paris, France, during World War I. The final group of 4 postcards pertains to the Laurents' candy store in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the 1940s.

Items in the Documents series (9 items) mostly relate to Stewart Laurent's military service, including 4 items about his discharge (May 1919), a Treasury Department document about the War Risk Insurance Act and related financial allotments (undated), and instructions for troops sailing from the United States to France onboard the USS President Lincoln [February 1918]. Three items, 2 of which are dated November 18, 1914, concern the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company.

Printed Items and Ephemera (15 items) pertain to Stewart F. Laurent's military service and personal life. A 1908 program for an event at Glenolden Grammar School and an unidentified photograph from 1907 are enclosed with an invitation to Laurent's wedding. The remaining items are from the World War I era, including 2 newsletters about the French Riviera in the spring of 1919, a group of ticket stubs with a parody song ("Silver Threads Among the Black"), Laurent's pay book, a program for a variety performance in Aix-les-Bains, and 3 booklets: a guide to the French Riviera, a history of and guide to Paris, and a soldier's French phrasebook. This collection also includes 2 realia items: a string of beads and a private's chevron.

This collection is made up of correspondence, military documents, photographs, printed items, and ephemera related to Dr. William Jason Mixter, who served in the United States Army during World War I, and his wife Dorothy.

This collection is made up of correspondence, military documents, photographs, printed items, and ephemera related to Dr. William Jason Mixter, who served in the United States Army during World War I, and his wife Dorothy.

The Correspondence series (1.75 linear feet) comprises the bulk of the collection. The first group of correspondence is made up of 48 letters and postcards that William Jason Mixter sent to his wife Dorothy from March 9, 1915-May 21, 1915. He described his voyage to Europe, his brief stay in England, and his experiences working in French hospitals near the war front. His letters include details about his work with specific patients, comments about the sinking of the Lusitania, and other war news.

William Jason and Dorothy Mixter wrote most of the remaining correspondence to each other between May 1917 and April 1918, while William served with Base Hospital No. 6 in France and Base Hospital No. 204 in Hursley, England. He shared anecdotes about his experiences and reported on his medical work. Dorothy provided news of their children and life in Woods Hole, Massachusetts. Their correspondence includes letters, telegrams, and postcards. Other writers include Samuel J. Mixter, Jason's father, who wrote from Boston, Massachusetts, about his daily life and about his work as a medical inspector. Other soldiers, former patients, and acquaintances also wrote to members of the Mixter family.

The collection includes 25 picture postcards depicting French scenes during and after the war; 3 are integrated into the Correspondence series, and the remaining 22 are housed with the Printed Items and Ephemera series.

The Military Papers series is divided into three subseries. Chronological Military Papers (51 items) include memorandums, orders, letters, telegrams, and other items pertaining to William Jason Mixter's military service during World War I, particularly related to his discharge in 1919. The subseries contains a list of personnel who served at Base Hospital No. 6. The Account Book, Diagnosis Book, and Notebooks subseries (4 items) consists of William Jason Mixter's account book from the London City & Midland Bank (June 30, 1918-January 15, 1919), a diagnosis book regarding soldiers' complaints onboard the SS Northland from February 11, 1919-February 17, 1919, and a notebook with brief personal memoranda. William Jason Mixter kept a medical notebook during his time at Hursley Camp Hospital near Winchester, England. He recorded biographical and medical information about his patients, and information about medical treatments. The Hursley Camp Hospital volume enclosed numerous clinical record slips and other manuscript notes.

The American Women's War Hospital Documents (3 items), pertaining to an institution in Paignton, England, are comprised of a photograph of nurses and patients outside of the hospital (December 1914) and two bundles of letter typescripts that a nurse named Mary Dexter wrote to her mother about her work at the hospital (November 22, 1914-January 9, 1915, and January 15, 1915-July 16, [1915]).

The Writings series (10 items) contains 9 typed and manuscript poems, mostly related to American soldiers' experiences during World War I, on topics such as volunteering for the army, traveling overseas, and encountering death. The poems "The Americans" and "Only a Volunteer" are present in manuscript and typescript form, and "The Young Dead" and "The Woman's Burden" are attributed to female authors (Lilian Palmer Powers and Laura E. Richards, respectively). The final item is a typescript of a resolution presented at a social club encouraging its members to proclaim loyalty during the war.

The Photographs series (114 items) is comprised of 113 photographic prints and a 32-page photograph album; some images are repeated. Items include studio portraits of William Jason Mixter in uniform; group portraits of nurses, doctors, and other medical personnel; pictures of wounded and convalescent soldiers during and after operations; interior views of medical facilities; and views of buildings and destruction in France. The photograph album and 80 loose items are housed in the Graphics Division (see Alternate Locations for more information).

The Printed Items and Ephemera series (59 items) consists of 3 unique pamphlets; 18 unique newspapers, newsletters, and newspaper clippings; 28 unique ephemeral items; and 4 books.

The pamphlets include 5 copies of an article by William Jason Mixter entitled "Surgical Experiences in France," originally published in the Boston Medical and Surgical Journal 173.12 (September 16, 1915), pp. 413-418. The other pamphlets are an advertisement for an "Exhibition and Sale of the War Cartoons by Louis Raemaekers" (October 1916), including an introduction and small reproductions of the drawings, and "Welcome Home," a book commemorating the return of the 26th Division in April 1919. Newspaper articles and other publications (including 6 items housed in Oversize Manuscripts) pertain to aspects of the war, particularly concerning medical personnel, civilian relief organizations, and the medical career of Samuel J. Mixter. A copy of The Boston Herald dated November 11, 1918, announces the Armistice.

The 28 ephemeral items include programs and advertising cards pertaining to church services held in honor of Base Hospital No. 6; the collection includes several copies each of 2 programs. Other printed items include a small map of Cambridge and Boston, a circular related to the Boston Society of Psychiatry and Neurology, and a book of stationery with engravings of Belgian scenes. A few personal items relate to the Mixter family, such as visiting cards on which William Jason Mixter wrote personal messages, cards from Mixter's children with sewn pictures, a certificate regarding Dorothy Mixter's service with the American Red Cross canteen, and a small French-language almanac affixed to a card with colored illustrations of the Allied Nations' flags. Three additional items pertain directly to the American Red Cross: the cover of the December 1918 issue of The Red Cross Magazine, a Red Cross service flag for display in a home window, and an American Red Cross canteen worker patch. Other insignia items are a button and ribbon commemorating the 26th Division's return to the United States and two small pins that belonged to William Jason Mixter. Also present is William Jason Mixter's passport, issued on February 6, 1915.

The 4 books include: The History of U.S. Army Base Hospital No. 6 (Boston, Mass.: 1924), given to William Jason Mixter, Jr., by his father; Independence Day in London, 1918 (London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1918); The Old Humanities and the New Science... (London: J. Murray, 1919); and Dere Mable: Love Letters of a Rookie (New York: Frederick A. Stokes Co., 1918).